So good! We loved the pork fried rice, very flavorful! The veggie fried rolls were also very good! If you’re looking for flavorful pad Thai though, I will say it was a bit underwhelming in that regard. Otherwise great affordable spot!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: BBQ Pork Shoulder Fried Rice
Lynne Phillips
Ordered delivery from here tonight. HUGE mistake. Some of the worst tasteless bland stale Thai food I have ever had. Ordered FIVE different dishes and everything HORRIBLE. It’s going in the trash. DO NOT DO IT!
Food: 1
puneet lahoty
So we are vegetarians and ordered takeout. Overall we learned how and what to order that would make our experience for the next time much better. Here is what we observed and learned(+) The curry wasn’t sweet, had no sugar. Usually most places cater their curries to local palettes and add sugar, which is not how traditional curry is like in Thailand. I was looking for a place that has the authentic flavors not diluted by adding sugar. This one is that(+) They are able to customize based on request for vegetarians.My takeaway is that this place has the potential to be a great takeout option for me personally, if ordered correctly. I am giving it a 4 star for that potential and I will be ordering again and will revisit my review based on that experience.Learned, will calibrate for next time when we order:- Their food by default is very spicy. I like very spicy food, but this one was spicier for my palate as well. I ordered spicy (spice level 4 out of 5) and it was extremely spicy. Normally I am able to easily take in the 4 out of 5 from other restaurants. The 4 at other places is probably a 3 here- For vegetarians they just load huge chunks of deep fried tofu in the curries. That way the proportion of curry to vegetables was haywire. I would order curries and rice without tofu and broccoli next time (those are vegetables that come in huge sizes and takes away from the actual dish you are having).
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Green Curry, Thai Fried Rice
Cedric Chan
The most authentic Thai food I've seen in California. Prices are reasonable and the service is fine. I love the shrimp paste fried rice and beef noodle soup. It is in the heart of tenderloin so the location can be a problem.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 3
Simon P.
I. Love. Sai Jai Thai.The food here is on another level. As a Thai person, I usually am skeptical of ordering Pad Thai as it's usually a bit lackluster, but not at Sai Jai Thai. You can really taste the tamarind paste which I appreciate. They also craft their own meatballs for their Boat Noodles, another must try. The food here reminds me of a nice warm hug from my mom. If you're ever in the Tenderloin you have to try Sai Jai Thai.
Riya M.
One of my fav Thai food in the bay! The neighborhood is kind of sketch since it's near tenderloin so we always take it to go or order online and it's sooo good! Our go to orders are the pork shoulder fried rice, pad see ew with beef, and Tom yum soup with beef medium spice. The fried rice is phenomenal and the pork cuts are super tender and flavorful, love the sauce it comes with and honestly this is the dish that made us love this place. Pad see ew is great too but the beef is sometimes hard and not tender making it difficult to chew, so that's something I would encourage the restaurant to work on. The Tom yum is delicious perfect balance of sour, spicy, and flavorful, but again the beef can sometimes be rough than tender.
GR Ng
Awesome authentic thai food in SF.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Andrew R.
wow this is the best Thai place I've found in SF yet. The pad kee mao was SO spicy but also so flavorful and perfectly cooked. I was a bit skeptical when I walked in, but the food really shined and the service and overall experience was great. And for the price this is one of the best deals in the city. Will definitely be back!
Rose Choi
Regrettably, my visit to Sai Jai, an "authentic" Thai restaurant in the Tenderloin, left much to be desired. Despite having encountered subpar Thai takeout in the past, this experience stood out as particularly disappointing.It seems that MSG and salt were notably absent from their dishes that day. As a result, the flavors across all the offerings were astonishingly bland. One dish that particularly stood out was the fried chicken fried rice, which oddly resembled a chicken katsu placed atop Chinese fried rice. Unfortunately, it lacked the characteristic darker hue that signifies authentic Thai fried rice. The absence of salt further exacerbated the dish's lack of appeal.Even the mango sticky rice, a simple Thai dessert delicacy, failed to meet expectations. The mango's lackluster appearance was a letdown. The sticky rice itself was drowned in an excess of condensed milk. This unfortunate trend continued with the roti dessert, which suffered a similar fate under an excessive blanket of condensed milk.All in all, my experience at Sai Jai was deeply unsatisfying. The absence of essential seasonings and the mishandling of traditional dishes led to a disappointing meal that failed to capture the essence of authentic Thai cuisine.
Rose C.
Regrettably, my visit to Sai Jai, an "authentic" Thai restaurant in the Tenderloin, left much to be desired. Despite having encountered subpar Thai takeout in the past, this experience stood out as particularly disappointing.While I've attached the receipt for reference, it seems that MSG and salt were notably absent from their dishes that day. As a result, the flavors across all the offerings were astonishingly bland. One dish that particularly stood out was the fried chicken fried rice, which oddly resembled a chicken katsu placed atop Chinese fried rice. Unfortunately, it lacked the characteristic darker hue that signifies authentic Thai fried rice. The absence of salt further exacerbated the dish's lack of appeal.Even the mango sticky rice, a simple Thai dessert delicacy, failed to meet expectations. The mango's lackluster appearance was a letdown. The sticky rice itself was drowned in an excess of condensed milk. This unfortunate trend continued with the roti dessert, which suffered a similar fate under an excessive blanket of condensed milk.All in all, my experience at Sai Jai was deeply unsatisfying. The absence of essential seasonings and the mishandling of traditional dishes led to a disappointing meal that failed to capture the essence of authentic Thai cuisine.
Been here a few times and was always happy with the experience. A Vietnamese friend introduced me to the place and we always come here for our Thai food fix. We especially like their pork fried rice, crispy fish and pad see ew. Every new thing we try gets added to that list plus all the regular offerings like Pad Thai, etc.It's a small mom and pop shop you wouldn't know was there unless you specifically looked for it. It's clean, albeit can use a fresh coat of paint. But that's not what you would go here for. The service is good and the staff are friendly. I always give them a thumbs up.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 4
Chris W.
Used to absolutely love their pork shoulder fried rice back in the days, and unfortunately haven't given it a try since Covid. We got take out recently of the following: - Pork shoulder fried rice: Greasier than what I remember, the pork itself was thinly cut and tasty with the side sauce. 4/5- Pad Makeur Chicken: Very oily, bland. Not like our favorite pad Makeur from Sue's kitchen in El Sobrante. Eggplants we're cooked nicely. 3/5- Grilled whole tilapia: Love the garlic sauce in this, fish was a bit on the drier side. 4/5Portions were generous, recommend also trying their stuffed Angel wings and other curry dishes. Glad they survived the pandemic!
Brandon Camara
Went in when it was pretty empty so I was expecting a decently delicious meal but sadly all I got was this under seasoned chicken over rice. Rice was good but the chicken was lacking any type of seasoning it was beyond bland and on top of that the bell pepper were raw and burnt at the same time. Would not recommend! Staff were very condescending too they seemed very annoyed to even take my order.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Kona 7
I always order takeout at Sai Jai Thai and am Loving EVERYTHING they've got on their menu!! Very Satisfying, Delicious, Spicy, and full of Wonderful interesting flavors in every meal??Very Friendly and understandable workers, really admire this place a bunch for how greatly it's been these past 2 yrs me showing up An Absolute MUST visit here if you're hungry and craving some special Thai. Great Prices. PLUS THEIR THAI ICED TEA, oh my GOODNESS soo frckng Worth it's price and size. Better than other places that give you a small thai iced tea for very expensive price. Pleased to support this business with Gratitude. I APPRECIATE YOU GUYS!!✨??
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Green Curry
EH W.
This is a long overdue review- ive always complained that there are no real authentic Thai restaurants in the SF Bay Area when I compare it to Thai restaurants in the Los Angeles area.I get really disappointed . However, there are exceptions. Sai Jai Thai is one of them. price points are reasonable ...It's family style. and the dishes are authentically Thai, just like in Bangkok... and even just like Los Angeles.for instance, very few Thai restaurants here offer crispy pork with Chinese broccoli... they have it here and it was excellent.every dish we ordered was excellent. you really can't go wrong.The only "downside" is it's located in the Tenderloin and you have to go through the rough area to get to it... we opted for lunch so no problems.
So good! We loved the pork fried rice, very flavorful! The veggie fried rolls were also very good! If you’re looking for flavorful pad Thai though, I will say it was a bit underwhelming in that regard. Otherwise great affordable spot!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: BBQ Pork Shoulder Fried Rice
Ordered delivery from here tonight. HUGE mistake. Some of the worst tasteless bland stale Thai food I have ever had. Ordered FIVE different dishes and everything HORRIBLE. It’s going in the trash. DO NOT DO IT!
Food: 1
So we are vegetarians and ordered takeout. Overall we learned how and what to order that would make our experience for the next time much better. Here is what we observed and learned(+) The curry wasn’t sweet, had no sugar. Usually most places cater their curries to local palettes and add sugar, which is not how traditional curry is like in Thailand. I was looking for a place that has the authentic flavors not diluted by adding sugar. This one is that(+) They are able to customize based on request for vegetarians.My takeaway is that this place has the potential to be a great takeout option for me personally, if ordered correctly. I am giving it a 4 star for that potential and I will be ordering again and will revisit my review based on that experience.Learned, will calibrate for next time when we order:- Their food by default is very spicy. I like very spicy food, but this one was spicier for my palate as well. I ordered spicy (spice level 4 out of 5) and it was extremely spicy. Normally I am able to easily take in the 4 out of 5 from other restaurants. The 4 at other places is probably a 3 here- For vegetarians they just load huge chunks of deep fried tofu in the curries. That way the proportion of curry to vegetables was haywire. I would order curries and rice without tofu and broccoli next time (those are vegetables that come in huge sizes and takes away from the actual dish you are having).
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Green Curry, Thai Fried Rice
The most authentic Thai food I've seen in California. Prices are reasonable and the service is fine. I love the shrimp paste fried rice and beef noodle soup. It is in the heart of tenderloin so the location can be a problem.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 3
I. Love. Sai Jai Thai.The food here is on another level. As a Thai person, I usually am skeptical of ordering Pad Thai as it's usually a bit lackluster, but not at Sai Jai Thai. You can really taste the tamarind paste which I appreciate. They also craft their own meatballs for their Boat Noodles, another must try. The food here reminds me of a nice warm hug from my mom. If you're ever in the Tenderloin you have to try Sai Jai Thai.
One of my fav Thai food in the bay! The neighborhood is kind of sketch since it's near tenderloin so we always take it to go or order online and it's sooo good! Our go to orders are the pork shoulder fried rice, pad see ew with beef, and Tom yum soup with beef medium spice. The fried rice is phenomenal and the pork cuts are super tender and flavorful, love the sauce it comes with and honestly this is the dish that made us love this place. Pad see ew is great too but the beef is sometimes hard and not tender making it difficult to chew, so that's something I would encourage the restaurant to work on. The Tom yum is delicious perfect balance of sour, spicy, and flavorful, but again the beef can sometimes be rough than tender.
Awesome authentic thai food in SF.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
wow this is the best Thai place I've found in SF yet. The pad kee mao was SO spicy but also so flavorful and perfectly cooked. I was a bit skeptical when I walked in, but the food really shined and the service and overall experience was great. And for the price this is one of the best deals in the city. Will definitely be back!
Regrettably, my visit to Sai Jai, an "authentic" Thai restaurant in the Tenderloin, left much to be desired. Despite having encountered subpar Thai takeout in the past, this experience stood out as particularly disappointing.It seems that MSG and salt were notably absent from their dishes that day. As a result, the flavors across all the offerings were astonishingly bland. One dish that particularly stood out was the fried chicken fried rice, which oddly resembled a chicken katsu placed atop Chinese fried rice. Unfortunately, it lacked the characteristic darker hue that signifies authentic Thai fried rice. The absence of salt further exacerbated the dish's lack of appeal.Even the mango sticky rice, a simple Thai dessert delicacy, failed to meet expectations. The mango's lackluster appearance was a letdown. The sticky rice itself was drowned in an excess of condensed milk. This unfortunate trend continued with the roti dessert, which suffered a similar fate under an excessive blanket of condensed milk.All in all, my experience at Sai Jai was deeply unsatisfying. The absence of essential seasonings and the mishandling of traditional dishes led to a disappointing meal that failed to capture the essence of authentic Thai cuisine.
Regrettably, my visit to Sai Jai, an "authentic" Thai restaurant in the Tenderloin, left much to be desired. Despite having encountered subpar Thai takeout in the past, this experience stood out as particularly disappointing.While I've attached the receipt for reference, it seems that MSG and salt were notably absent from their dishes that day. As a result, the flavors across all the offerings were astonishingly bland. One dish that particularly stood out was the fried chicken fried rice, which oddly resembled a chicken katsu placed atop Chinese fried rice. Unfortunately, it lacked the characteristic darker hue that signifies authentic Thai fried rice. The absence of salt further exacerbated the dish's lack of appeal.Even the mango sticky rice, a simple Thai dessert delicacy, failed to meet expectations. The mango's lackluster appearance was a letdown. The sticky rice itself was drowned in an excess of condensed milk. This unfortunate trend continued with the roti dessert, which suffered a similar fate under an excessive blanket of condensed milk.All in all, my experience at Sai Jai was deeply unsatisfying. The absence of essential seasonings and the mishandling of traditional dishes led to a disappointing meal that failed to capture the essence of authentic Thai cuisine.
Restaurantji Recommends
Been here a few times and was always happy with the experience. A Vietnamese friend introduced me to the place and we always come here for our Thai food fix. We especially like their pork fried rice, crispy fish and pad see ew. Every new thing we try gets added to that list plus all the regular offerings like Pad Thai, etc.It's a small mom and pop shop you wouldn't know was there unless you specifically looked for it. It's clean, albeit can use a fresh coat of paint. But that's not what you would go here for. The service is good and the staff are friendly. I always give them a thumbs up.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 4
Used to absolutely love their pork shoulder fried rice back in the days, and unfortunately haven't given it a try since Covid. We got take out recently of the following: - Pork shoulder fried rice: Greasier than what I remember, the pork itself was thinly cut and tasty with the side sauce. 4/5- Pad Makeur Chicken: Very oily, bland. Not like our favorite pad Makeur from Sue's kitchen in El Sobrante. Eggplants we're cooked nicely. 3/5- Grilled whole tilapia: Love the garlic sauce in this, fish was a bit on the drier side. 4/5Portions were generous, recommend also trying their stuffed Angel wings and other curry dishes. Glad they survived the pandemic!
Went in when it was pretty empty so I was expecting a decently delicious meal but sadly all I got was this under seasoned chicken over rice. Rice was good but the chicken was lacking any type of seasoning it was beyond bland and on top of that the bell pepper were raw and burnt at the same time. Would not recommend! Staff were very condescending too they seemed very annoyed to even take my order.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
I always order takeout at Sai Jai Thai and am Loving EVERYTHING they've got on their menu!! Very Satisfying, Delicious, Spicy, and full of Wonderful interesting flavors in every meal??Very Friendly and understandable workers, really admire this place a bunch for how greatly it's been these past 2 yrs me showing up An Absolute MUST visit here if you're hungry and craving some special Thai. Great Prices. PLUS THEIR THAI ICED TEA, oh my GOODNESS soo frckng Worth it's price and size. Better than other places that give you a small thai iced tea for very expensive price. Pleased to support this business with Gratitude. I APPRECIATE YOU GUYS!!✨??
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Green Curry
This is a long overdue review- ive always complained that there are no real authentic Thai restaurants in the SF Bay Area when I compare it to Thai restaurants in the Los Angeles area.I get really disappointed . However, there are exceptions. Sai Jai Thai is one of them. price points are reasonable ...It's family style. and the dishes are authentically Thai, just like in Bangkok... and even just like Los Angeles.for instance, very few Thai restaurants here offer crispy pork with Chinese broccoli... they have it here and it was excellent.every dish we ordered was excellent. you really can't go wrong.The only "downside" is it's located in the Tenderloin and you have to go through the rough area to get to it... we opted for lunch so no problems.